Burlington weekly free press. [volume] (Burlington, Vt.) 1866-1928, 1887-08-12

| an inmate of the House of Refuge. This
institution was described as reformatory-
fine fight of i"onic humor in theway of
nomenclature. 1t was VIGOROUSLY a care
fully perfected machine for the transforma-
ton of young vagabonds into scientific
rogues, Patrick was, to be sure, incapable
of becomed finished anything. But it
may be assumed that his years of seclusion
in the Refuge were not years of seclusion
from the knowledge of evil. At last he was
turned out again after such boyhood, to
begin his career as n man.
Much to the disappointment, doubtless,
of his kind instructors he failed to achieve
that brilliant distinction which they had
probably anticipated for him. He slouched
about here and there, too pigeon-livered
to be at war with society, and yet prone to
get food and drink whenever he could with
out working for them. He was never his
own man; some one or other was always
making use of him. There was in him u
vein Of weak, good-humored sociability.
He hated to he alone, and no companions
were too low for him; there We're none
whose jokes he would not giggle at or whose
snubbing he would resent. He was often
made a cat s-paw of and never got any
thing like fair share of the chcstnuts. At
this time he drove truck, and that was as
near as he ever came to having II profession.
His truck was occasionally of service TO
his ght-iingered friends and in one way
or another he managed to rub alonng. At
last he fell in love.
Men of his homeless sort easily and quietly
adapt themselves to Circumstances, and
would never do wrong were there no such
thing as temptations Mary Kelly was a
4 41,.,,
was an honest efficient young fellow; and
when Patrick made their acquaintance he
initiated their ways and manners as accu-
rately as he could, and, as they knew moth
ing to his discredit and were well-disposed
people, they soon began to feel a kindness
toward him. He could gossip amusingly,
and he flattered the object of his affections
with no little tact. She suspected him of a
taste for whiskey, but of nothing worse,
and she fanced she could soon cure him of
that. AT all events, she finally agreed to
marry him; and married to him she was
Of Patrick domestic career the records
are meagre; most likely his wife had the
larger share of the domesticity to herself
Patrick was affable, plausible and so long
as he was under her affable eye, tractable
also; but not emen a smart wife can make
| anything of a man who is at the beck and
call of the first acquaintance he meets, and
whose constitution demands alcohol. Pat
| rick seldom got drunk or sober, he was a
| fluent and accomplished liar. He always
made out the best case possible for himself
at home; and his wife, after detecting him
once or twice, came to the conclusion that
it was no good asking questions; she let
him go and come as he pleased, and only
insisted upon having money enough to keep
the fire going and gown on her back.
She had not made a brilliant marriage;
but there were many who had done worse.
Daniel Keely, Patrick's brother -in-law,
had for several years been serving as bank
Waterman with another man to1relieve him
on Sundays; the latter resigned his position,
and Keely Immediately recommended
Pat for the job The directors of the bank ac-
cepted him mainly on this recommendation.
To act as Waterman on bank is very
simple matter-from one point of view,
| This was the point of view taken by the
directors; Patrick was appointed, and no
further thought was bestowed upon him.
He received salary of a dollar and "A
quarter day.
Now, this was the first position of trust
and Importance that Patrick had ever held,
and he was proud of it. He determined to
discharge his duties faithfully and await
| the promotion which, he fancied, was GER
tain to come in due time. The thought
that he was the guardian of millions exalted
him in his own esteem and, as he was en-
dowed with keen love of appreciation, he
was fond of conversing on the subject with
his friends. 1t was ali very well to be IA la
borer, huckster or regular tradesman;
but what about the parsonage who held in
the hollow of his hand, as it We're wealth
beyond the greed of avarice His friends
agreed with him that it was big thing; to
his vast satisfaction, they began to treat
him with certain Difference, which he alb
sorbed as the parched earth soaks up the
rain; he had been hankering after that sort
of tribute for forty years and had never till
now got a drop of it.
Meanwhile Inspector ,Byrnes, ever since
his first Interview with this man on the day
of the Manhattan robbery, had never taken
his eyes of him. Patrick Shelevin was not
at first, considered to be ms important an OBJ
ject of suspicion as some others: but that
he was not entirely innocent seemed more
than probable Moreover, he was the only
employee of the bank whose past history and
antecedents did not improve upon investi-
CATION. The others, one after one, were re-
leved from suspicion and supervision; but
the more of Shelevin's record that came to
light the more cause there seemed to be to
regard him with distrust. His steps were
constantly followed, and his every act and
ntterance, so far as was possible, noted and
considered
But though Shelevin's was feeble nature
he had the compensation belonging to most
feeble creatures-subtlety and GINNING. For
the first few weeks after the robberyhe was
sedulously on his guard. He looked askanct
at any unfamiliar face, no matter in how
plausible or friendly manner il presented
itself the course of his daily life was order
ly and regular, and he avoided association
with all suspicious characters. The detectives
ingenuity, which might have succeeded
with much more able men, was for long
time employed in vain against Shelevin who
was inveterately suspicious of both men
and women. And yet, as the weeks went
by, and grew into months, the patient Off
Ger at the head of the detective bureau be
} came more and more firmly convinced that
this stumbling and insignificant creature
carried about with himl the whole secret OF
the great robbery, and that if the mystery